Andrew Kleske, 39, moved to San Diego from Binghamton, N.Y., in 1982 and since has been hard at work carving out a career as a journalist.

Now at The North County Times, Kleske started in San Diego media as managing editor of San Diego State University’s Daily Aztec. He graduated from SDSU with a degree in journalism, and then worked for the San Diego Daily Transcript for 14 years. At the Transcript, Kleske played a key role starting in 1992 in the development of one of the country’s first newspaper Internet sites. He has been cyber-savvy since and two years ago was hired by the North County Times to lead its online editorial initiative.

In addition, he does a Sunday morning business report on Channel 10 KGTV, and a daily business report on KOGO radio.

Kleske is a lecturer in the University of California, San Diego Department of Communications, teaching basic and Internet journalism. He also is on the board of the Society of Professional Journalists and the San Diego Press Club. He volunteers in religious education at the First Unitarian Universalist Church and for the Child Abuse Prevention Foundation.

His writing has earned him many professional awards, and he has received three journalism fellowships, one from the National Press Club, another from the International Business Communications Council and the third from the Knight Center for Special Journalism.

“This is particularly nice,” Kleske says of being recognized as one of 40 Under Forty, “because I only had one more year to go before I was disqualified.”

— Robin Hatfield